Administrators hope for sale as McWilliams Wine enters administration

The company will operate as normal while administrators try to preserve one of Australia’s oldest winemakers.

McWilliams - Australia’s sixth-biggest wine company - has an extensive product range. Picture: AFP)

After 141 years and six generations of family ownership, McWilliams Wine Group has entered voluntary administration.

It comes 12 months after the company was forced to seek an urgent capital injection and pursue asset sales after it breached some of its lending covenants and posted a $5.5m annual loss.

McWilliams - Australia’s sixth-biggest wine company - is an unlisted publicly owned company, with an extensive product range marketed under a portfolio of owned brands, including McWilliams and Mount Pleasant. It is also the sole Australian distributor for prominent global brands including Champagne Taittinger, Mateus, Henkell and Mionetto.

McWilliams chairman Jim Brayne said “a number of factors have contributed to a decline in business performance, including evolving structural market dynamics and capital constraints”.

“We will work closely with the administrator during the process in order to strengthen the prospects of a positive outcome for all involved,” he said.

Late on Wednesday, KPMG partners Gayle Dickerson, Tim Mableson and Ryan Eagle were appointed as voluntary administrators of McWilliams Wines Group.

Ms Dickerson, who is a restructuring services partner at KPMG Australia, said although it was early in the administration process, they hoped to find a buyer to secure the company’s heritage.

“We are seeking expressions of interest to recapitalise or acquire the group to take this heritage brand forward in the future both locally and globally,” Ms Dickerson said.

“The company will continue to operate as normal and we are working with the McWilliams’ family with the support of its employees while we work hard to try to preserve one of Australia’s oldest winemakers.

“There are significant wine assets in the Riverina district and the Hunter Valley, long established distribution channels and relationships with global international distributor brands.”

Ms Dickerson said all customers, growers, suppliers and key stakeholders would be contacted directly and a meeting of the creditors of the company has been scheduled for January 20.